Explosive



Patented June 8, 1926.

WALTER O. SNELLING, 0F ALLENTOWN, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR T0 TROJANE'QWDER COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N- Y., A. COBEQRATION OF NEW YORK.

EXPLO SIVE No Drawing. Original application filed March 16, 1921, SerialNo. 452,734. Divided and this application filed December 11, 1924.Serial No. 755,321.

My invention has to do with the dissemination through the air, by meansof explosives, of explosively inert materials such, for example, astoxic materials used in recent chemical warfare or dyes adapted bydispersion in the air to give signals readily visible. at greatdistances. One object of the invention is to bring about the desireddissemination in a more efiicient mannerv than heretofore practiced, aswell as to increase the extent and fineness of the dissemination.Another object is to reduce the tendency of the toxic or other inertmaterial to decomposeat the moment of explosion. Further objects andadvantages of the invention will appear from the following description.

Hand grenades and shells containing various materials intended to bespread and widely disseminated through the atmosphere at the moment ofexplosion of the shell or other container, have met with considerableuse in warfare in recent years. Ingeneral, such devices have consistedof a central explosive charge suitably adapted to be detohated at theproper time, and an outer envelopeiof the material which it was desiredto. disseminate through the air. This material may be a liquid toxicsubstance, as for example, diophosgene; a solid toxic substance, asdiphenylcyanarsine; a liquid lachrymator, as brombenzylcyanide; a liquidvesicant, as dichlorethylsulfide; (mustard gas); or such non-toxicmaterials as dyes, intended by dispersion. in the air to give signalsreadily visible at great distances.

I have discovered that nitrated starch, existing in the form of nitratedstarch granules, by simple admixture with toxic, colored, lachrymatory,vesicant, or other'materials, gives an explosive filling charge whichpossesses many points of advantage over the formerly used toxic andsignaling shells and other like devices. Starch before nitration existsin the form of very minute granules, differing somewhat in sizeaccording to the botanical sourccot the starch, but in all cases only afew hundredths of a millimeter in diameter at the largest. On beingnitrated the sizeofthe granules does not noticeably increase, and wellnitrated starch consists of a fine powder of which the size of theaverage particle isless than two-one-hundredths of a millimeter indiameter. By directly mixing nitrostarch granules with a non-explosivematerial which it is desired to disseminate through the atmosphere infinely divided particles, I obtain a composition or mixture which ondetonation is far more efficientthan such devices as have been used upto the present time, the relation between the detonating agent and thematerial to be disseminated or atomized being in the prior devices farless directthan in mixtures made according to my present invention.

The close association of the liquid or solid body which it is desired todisseminate at the instant of explosion with the minute particles ofnitrated starch, together with the intense rending effect whichnitrostarch produces at the instant of detonation, reduces the admixedbody to particles or extreme fineness, and projects those particles withgreat force to a considerable distance from the center of the explosion,thus producing the desired dissemination of the admixed body to a muchgreater extent than has ever been possible by previously known means.

As an illustration of my invention, I will recite the preparation of acomposition which I find particularly suited for use as a filling chargein toxic shell. I first thoroughly incorporate 79 parts by weight ofnitrostarch in the form of well nitrated nitrosta-rch granules of 13.00%nitrogen, and one-half part of a heavy lubricating oil. After thethorough mixing of these two ingredients I add 20 parts of finelypowdered diphenylcyanarsine, which 'is then thoroughly incorporated withthe mixture 01. nitrostarch and oil. The finished mixtureis ready foruse as a filling charge for grenades.

In general, I prefer to use from 4:0 to 80 parts by weight nitratedstarch and from 10 to 40 parts of the material to be disseminated oratomized, the remainder of the composition comprising customarystabilizing, antiacid, oxidizing or consistency-givingmaterials.

In some cases, as for example where the mixture is to be used incharging aerial dropbombs, decreased sensitiveness of the explosive maybe desirable, and this may be secured where the material to bedisseminated is a liquid by increasing somewhat the percentage of saidmaterial in the mixture. For

lar results can be obtained with other chlorinated bodies, such, forexample, as carbon tetrachloride, ethylene trichloride or ethylenetetrachlo-rid, materials producing upon decomposition such poisonousproductsas free chlorine and carbonyl dichloride or phosgene, largelyused for offensive purposes in recent chemical Warfare.

In some cases I may rely upon the decomposition products of thechlorinated bodies as the sole toxic agent to be disseminated by thenitrostarch explosive. For example, a

"simple mixture of nitrated starch, an oxidizing agent, such as sodiumnitrate and a chlorinated body, such as hexachlorethane or carbontetrachloride may be employed. In this case, no toxic material ispresent in the shell before explosion, but upon detonation of thenitrostarch, the poisonous decomposi tion products are produced anddisseminated through the atmosphere as required. In this case of coursereduction of flame temperature is not secured or desired, the objectbeing to obtain as complete decomposition of the explosively inertingredientas possible. An example of such a mixture is:

Parts Nitrostarch (containing 10% of Water) 75 Hexachlorethane 20 Sodiumnitrate 5 100 I claim:

1. An explosive composition comprising an explosive agent, an oxidizingagent and a chlorinated hydrocarbon.

2. An explosive composition comprising chloride. 7

WALTER O. SNELLING.

